Marc Faber: I would own physical gold

"Faber noted weakness in such sectors as home builders, retailers, airlines and food companies. That made the precious metal a strong play, he added. 'First of all, I have a preference for physical gold, held in a safe deposit box outside the United States, and preferably in Asia, for a variety of reasons,' he said. Faber chided gold bears for missing the precious metal's 1999-to-2011 bull run. Faber also said that he had recently bought stock in Newport Mining, Freeport-McMoRan and Barrick. As a member of their boards, Faber also owned equity in Ivanplats, NovaGold and Turquoise Hill, he added." Continue reading

Continue ReadingMarc Faber: I would own physical gold

Has your life been stolen from you by the IRS?

"This stupid witch hunt which people inside the U.S. think is going after the uber rich 'off shoring' in 'tax havens' has done more to harm low and middle income 'targets' than anything I’ve seen them do down there in a long time. The comment by President Obama last week that they are paying to fix their infrastructure by 'repatriating taxes' is a LIE, it’s NOT 'taxes' It is fines and fees and penalties on paperwork nobody ever heard of outside the U.S. for the most part and they know it. If it were taxes it would even come close to being enough, as according to American Citizens Abroad, 82% of expats would owe zero taxes." Continue reading

Continue ReadingHas your life been stolen from you by the IRS?

A congressional speech on the centennial of the Expatriation Act of 1868

"In 1868, men stood on the floor of the House and quoted philosophers from the Roman Republic, Germany, Switzerland, and the Netherlands in support of the proposition that emigration and change of citizenship are basic human rights. In 1968, men stood on that same floor and spluttered that Americans who emigrated and changed their citizenship were traitors who should never be allowed to return for a visit." Continue reading

Continue ReadingA congressional speech on the centennial of the Expatriation Act of 1868

U.S. Expats Balk at Tax Law, Reconsider Citizenship

"Withers, in Hong Kong, says that many of its clients are giving up their green cards and U.S. citizenship after filing their taxes, deeming the tax liability to be too onerous. Among them are American expatriates who see their Singaporean and Hong Kong peers paying a far-lower income tax and aren't subject to capital-gains taxes, Mr. Krause said. The foreign grantor trust is becoming a favored method for passing on wealth, said Mr. Krause of Withers. Such trusts are 'highly advantageous' to families living abroad, he said." Continue reading

Continue ReadingU.S. Expats Balk at Tax Law, Reconsider Citizenship

How Edward Snowden and others can avoid $450 U.S. citizenship renunciation fee

"Snowden would only have to demonstrate with a preponderance of evidence that he has committed an act of treason. Sufficient bi-partisan accusations from notable political figures have accused him of treason that he should be able to make such a claim. The downside would of course be that an attempt to relinquish in this manner would be tantamount to a confession to the alleged crime. I wrote a blog post in February, 2011, explaining that those who relinquish citizenship should be able to avoid the new $450 renunciation fee that the State Department had begun to assess to renunciants by making a claim to have already relinquished their US citizenship." Continue reading

Continue ReadingHow Edward Snowden and others can avoid $450 U.S. citizenship renunciation fee

Got grandparents? Four places where you can become a citizen.

"Nobody ever hijacks an airplane and threatens to kill all the Lithuanians. There are no evil men in caves plotting to blow up buildings in Uruguay. There are no angry crowds in Karachi protesting civilian casualties from Panama’s unmanned drone fleet. And perhaps most importantly, there are no banks or brokerages around the world closing their doors to Slovenians simply because nobody wants to do business with their government. Now, there are a number of ways to obtain a second citizenship… but again, the quickest and cheapest route is if you happen to be part of the lucky bloodline club." Continue reading

Continue ReadingGot grandparents? Four places where you can become a citizen.

Why Are So Many People Choosing To Leave The United States Permanently?

"Traditionally, the American people have been some of the most patriotic people on the face of the planet. So why are we now seeing such an increase in the number of people choosing to leave the United States permanently? Well, the truth is that there are a whole host of reasons why people are losing faith in this country and are deciding to leave..." Continue reading

Continue ReadingWhy Are So Many People Choosing To Leave The United States Permanently?

Massive jump in people who renounced US citizenship last quarter

"We come to view our nationalities rather ironically as a big piece of our core individuality. I am an American. I am a Canadian. I am an Austrian. Instead of– I am a human being. It has taken decades… centuries even… to reach this point. So the fact that more and more people are making the gut-wrenching decision to ditch their US passports is truly a powerful trend. So what’s driving it? Taxes… and the search for liberty. For many, their tax bills constitute a financial breaking point. Particularly for people who spend most of their time outside of the United States and are constantly hamstrung by worldwide taxation and information disclosures." Continue reading

Continue ReadingMassive jump in people who renounced US citizenship last quarter

On Life Remotely: An Interview with Jessica Mans

"Jessica Mans, one of the people who runs Life Remotely, which opened my eyes to just how, well … really cool this lifestyle can be, graciously took some time to talk about location independence with us. Life Remotely is a great resource for everything from planning your own extended trips to just living vicariously through the experiences of three people who got a taste of travel and living abroad and decided a taste wasn’t enough. They’ve just wrapped up an epic drive from Seattle to Patagonia (yup, you read that right) and have put out one of Amazon’s Best Books of 2013: Don’t Go There. It’s Not Safe. You’ll Die." Continue reading

Continue ReadingOn Life Remotely: An Interview with Jessica Mans